Louisiana has failed the children in its care in the Office of Juvenile Justice facilities and is planning to punish those children for its failings. The state’s plan to move children to the Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola will exacerbate the harms to those children and make Louisiana less safe. Malcolm Jenkins, a former New Orleans Saint, activist, entrepreneur, and co-founder of Players Coalition, and Demario Davis, an All-Pro linebacker for the New Orleans Saints, writes a powerful Op-ed. Read the full Op-ed here.

When the COVID-19 pandemic forced schools around the country to close in March 2020, children incarcerated in secure care facilities in Louisiana were left without any educational services for months. Many of LCCR’s clients were affected by this crisis, and they experienced significant learning loss and isolation as a result of educational gaps.  Students with disabilities in the custody of the Office of Juvenile Justice (OJJ) were most affected by the educational disruption caused by the pandemic. These vulnerable students are significantly overrepresented in OJJ custody in Louisiana. According to one study conducted by the Coalition for Juvenile Justice, up […]

Louis Gibson isn’t taking his second chance for granted. After being sentenced as a child to die in prison, he’s living a life he didn’t think was possible just a few years ago.

The election on November 3 will be unlike any New Orleans residents have seen before. An unprecedented number of current and former public defenders are on the ballot vying for judicial seats. These positions are often filled by prosecutors, which unfortunately means that few judges have worked with defendants or have witnessed firsthand their experiences with the system. It is rare for public defenders to run in judicial races, but that is changing this year across the country and right here in New Orleans.  Of the seven public defense attorneys who are running, three in particular have deep ties to […]

2020 has been a tough year in so many ways, but we still have a lot to celebrate in the fight for children’s rights! Three important laws, including the long-awaited Raise the Age Act, take effect this summer to help kids thrive and protect them from the dangers and long-term consequences of incarceration. This progress is the culmination of years of hard work and collaboration with partners, young people, and families and we are thrilled to share it with you today! Raise the Age LA Raise the Age Louisiana finally went into full effect this month! As of July 1, […]

It’s been a month since the COVID-19 crisis upended nearly all of our lives. And LCCR has been fighting harder than ever for the health and safety of children in Louisiana’s justice system. Calling on the Governor – As of right now, Louisiana accounts for a disproportionate amount of all positive COVID-19 cases in juvenile prisons in the entire United States. Three weeks ago, none of Louisiana’s incarcerated kids tested positive. As of today, 27 have (plus four more in group homes). Three weeks from now, how many more will test positive? Juvenile prisons have already proved ripe for outbreak. That’s […]

When the COVID-19 crisis began in New Orleans, there were 45 children locked up in the city’s jail, and hundreds more incarcerated throughout the state–all in settings extremely vulnerable to outbreak. Since that moment, LCCR has been working tirelessly to promote the safety and wellbeing of these children, as well as all of the children in the juvenile and criminal justice systems. We wanted to share this brief update on how, in a pandemic reality, LCCR is continuing to fight for the rights of kids: Family Needs – This past week we contacted all of our client families to see […]

CELEBRATION FOR CHILDREN’S RIGHTS CANCELED With concerns about COVID-19 continuing to weigh heavily on everyone’s minds, we have decided to cancel this year’s Celebration for Children’s Rights event. The safety of our guests is just too important to jeopardize with a party. We hope to see you next year!​ ——————— With our Celebration for Children’s Rights coming up on Thursday, June 18 (6-8pm), we’re excited to introduce our Pascal Calogero Champion of Justice awardee for 2020: Denese Shervington, MD, MPH. “Dr. Shervington’s advocacy over the past decade has been reshaping how our city comprehends and responds to trauma – especially […]

CELEBRATION FOR CHILDREN’S RIGHTS CANCELED With concerns about COVID-19 continuing to weigh heavily on everyone’s minds, we have decided to cancel this year’s Celebration for Children’s Rights event. The safety of our guests is just too important to jeopardize with a party. We hope to see you next year!​ ——————— [slideshow_deploy id=’6688′]   Our lawyers, social workers, and policy advocates work tirelessly in support of our kids all year long. But on this night, we celebrate. Join us on Thursday, June 18th at our annual benefit event: the Celebration for Children’s Rights, presented by Milbank. We’ll be recognizing our successes […]

At the Louisiana Center for Children’s Rights, we understand that an arrest can often coincide with other crises going on in the life of a child. That’s why we listen. We learn. And we help. LCCR social worker Nell had been working with “Corey” all summer long on his probation case, and the 13-year-old was making great strides. Then a crisis struck: Corey’s mom lost her job. Soon after, his family was evicted from their home with nowhere else to go. Even though Corey had been doing well on probation, his family’s sudden homelessness put his progress, and his very […]